Touch
by Beckyhelene
Summary: After the events of Friends Don't Fade Away, RJ thinks about what happened between him and Fran and how it makes him feel.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Power Rangers and all characters therin are the sole property of Disney and folks under their employ. I own nothing except for the stuff I'm putting said characters through, heehee.

RJ sat in his chair up in the loft, staring at his hand. He'd been sitting in the same position, staring at the appendage in wonderment and every so often turning it over and back again as if expecting to find something out of the ordinary for nearly an hour. He wasn't sure what it was exactly he was trying to see. Well, he was sure, but he knew it was something that he couldn't find by staring at his hand as if it was some foreign thing, yet he stared on anyway. He wanted to find an explanation, an answer, as to why his hand seemed to be having a pleasant tingling sensation, a comforting slow burn, ever since earlier when he'd come out of his, quite literal, beastly state.

"RJ?" Said a voice, tearing him from his thoughts. RJ blinked and looked up to see Lily standing before him with a concerned look on her face. "You okay?" She asked. RJ blinked again and stared at her blankly, still somewhat caught up in his own thoughts to understand her simple question.

"Huh?" He said. Lily frowned.

"I said are you okay," she said. "Though, I think you just answered that question." Lily took a step closer to him and put a hand on his forehead. The touch seemed to bring him back to reality fully as his eyes lost their lost look and he chuckled, shaking her hand off.

"I'm fine," he said. "Sorry, just…thinking," he said. Lily's mouth formed a quiet 'O' and she nodded.

"I see," she said. She nodded again and sat down on the floor in front of him, making herself comfortable. "Makes sense, you've had a _pretty _eventful day, huh?" She said with a small laugh. RJ laughed along with her.

"That'd be an understatement," he said, causing Lily to laugh again.

"Yeah, I mean regaining control of your animal spirit, joining us in the fight…not to mention becoming a ranger," she said, listing off the things as if they were items on a grocery list. She paused before lightly smacking his leg. RJ's eyebrows went up.

"What was that for?" He asked, surprised.

"That's for not telling the rest of us you were a ranger too," she said with a small smile. RJ chuckled.

"Sorry, thought I'd be of more help playing the role of master and guiding you all," he said, putting his hands together in a Zen like manner. Lily rolled her eyes.

"Uh huh, sure, more like you thought it'd be more fun to sit back and relax while we do all the dirty work," she teased.

"Ah, ya got me," he replied. Once their laughter died down, RJ shook his head. "Anyway, I wasn't really thinking about joining you guys out there today," he admitted. "I was thinking about….what happened before that." Lily nodded, urging him to continue. "Ya know…me becoming less wolfy and all that," he said.

"Yeah, how'd that happen, anyway?" She asked. "I mean, Casey, Theo and I were a little thrown by you being a ranger to ask." RJ sighed, looking down.

"It…..was weird," he said softly. "I really lost it for a while….Things got pretty hairy," he paused, "no pun intended," he added quickly.

"What happened?" Lily asked.

"After you three left, Fran she," he paused again as the image of the girl in question entered his thoughts. Suddenly he felt that warm tingling sensation spread from his hand and envelope his entire body and he couldn't help as the corners of his mouth twitched up a bit in a smile. "She took care of me," he said in an awed whisper. He paused, catching himself and shook his head a bit before clearing his throat. "I felt terrible, like the wolf was literally inside of me, gnawing on my innards." Lily made a face at the mental picture that simile created. "My whole body just felt…..not right," he continued, "I could feel it coming….the transformation. And all I could think about was before…when I changed and attacked you guys and I knew that….if I changed and Fran was still here…..something bad could happen."

"So you told her to leave?" Lily asked. RJ gave a sad sort of smile.

"In hindsight, that probably would've been the most effective thing to do," he said.

"So, what did you do?" Lily asked.

"I grabbed the glass of water that was over here," he said, gesturing to the small TV table beside his chair, "and…sort of pretended to lose my grip and drop it. It wasn't a total act, I mean; I was pretty shaky so I probably would've dropped it even if I didn't want to. Anyway, so the glass broke and as I had hoped, Fran left to get me another glass. I was so relieved when she left to go downstairs. I figured while she was gone, I could try and rein in the wolf and…even if I couldn't, at least she wasn't around."

"So, what happened?"

"I didn't rein it in," RJ breathed out. He blinked, looking away as shame filled his face, "and Fran came back." He heard Lily's breath hitch in a small gasp as she waited to hear the rest. Lily thought back to when the four of them got back from battle and saw Fran. She didn't seem to have any injuries and for the most part looked like her usual happy self, so Lily knew that for the most part nothing truly horrible could've happened but she still was surprised. In front of her, RJ heaved a heavy sigh. "She came back with the glass of water….And here I was, Mr. Werewolf. I was up there," he said, pointing to the second level of the lost, "so I saw her before she saw me. It was like there was this war going on inside my head. The wolf part looked down at her and all he could see was a tasty treat on legs, and then there was the me part that wanted to scream at her, tell her to run while she could. Well, suffice to say…..the me……didn't win." Lily's eyes widened a bit. She was expecting him to say that he had won over the wolf and regained control over the wolf before anything happened.

"Go on," Lily breathed out.

"I growled at her," RJ recounted. He closed his eyes as the memory came to him. "She dropped the glass," he said, recalling the sounds, the smells, the sights, everything, from his memory. "She was so scared….I could smell it…..Her fear, it was all around me…I couldn't breathe without getting a whiff of it. And…it just…." He paused, afraid to continue, "excited the wolf even more," he muttered, his voice quivering. "She didn't run away…She just, stood there and tried talking to me, tried to reach me. And she…stepped back, and fell," he said, squeezing his eyes shut. "I jumped down and……I was on top of her…." He swallowed thickly as the memory continued to play in his mind. He remembered feeling her struggling beneath him, her fear growing by the second. While in that moment, the struggling and the increasing fear only made the wolf in him even more excited and wild. "And then…her hand…"

"Oh my god, you bit her hand?!" Lily exclaimed. Her voice cut through RJ's thoughts and he quickly looked at her.

"What?" He asked, totally caught off guard. "No," he quickly added once he replayed what she said in his mind. He shook his head and fixed her with an incredulous look. "Don't you think a bite mark on her hand would've been kind of noticeable to you guys when you saw her before?" Lily paused, closing her mouth.

"Oh yeah, good point," she said amidst a nervous chuckle. "Sorry, continue," she said. RJ sighed.

"I had my hand reeled back, ready to," he let out a shaky breath and was silent for a few moments, "strike," he finally forced out. "The me part…in was inside of me, wanting to stop, wanting to roll off of her and let her get away. I didn't want to hurt her, but the wolf was too strong."

"But you didn't," Lily spoke, "hurt her, I mean….right?" RJ looked at her and smiled a bit; partly to reassure her, but mostly because now the memory playing inside his head was reaching its more pleasant conclusion.

"No," he spoke, "I didn't." He paused for a moment as a chilling thought entered his mind. "Well, I mean, no more so then practically pouncing her and trying to get at her like I did had," he frowned and quickly shook his head, trying to let that go and return to the conclusion. "She just stopped," he said. "She stopped struggling, didn't make any sounds…I…for a second I thought she'd gone into some sort of shocked catatonic state. She just looked up in my eyes….like she was staring right past the wolf and looking right into my soul, to the me part," he breathed out, his voice once again awed as he remembered that experience. It was scary, but in a good way, if such a thing was possible. Her eyes, which had been filled with fear when he had jumped on top of her, changed and became filled with something else; hope, understanding, forgiveness. "It felt like she was looking at me for hours….and I could see her eyes, they…..it's like she understood. As if she was telling me that….she wanted the good old RJ back but….if something happened, it wasn't my fault." He blinked, the tingling inside of him making his heart flutter as he remembered the rest. "And then she just…put her hand up, against my," he chuckled a bit, "paw."

"And then what?" Lily asked. By this point of the story, she was already certain that RJ hadn't hurt Fran and was now on the edge of her seat, or at least she would have if she was sitting on a chair instead of on the floor, eager to hear the rest.

"Something changed," he said. "The wolf….it didn't feel so out of my control anymore." He smiled. "I guess you could say it got domesticated. One minute there's a war going on inside of me, one side wild and scary and the other trying to hold it back, tame it somehow, and the next minute…it was tame. I was able to pull the wolf back, regain control over it. I became me again." He looked at Lily and could see by her face that she was expecting him to continue, that she knew that wasn't the end of the story. "I was so shocked," he went on. "I thought that it was a losing battle, to be honest. I…I lost hope." Lily smiled.

"And she gave it back to you," she said. RJ looked at her.

"What?" He asked.

"The you part inside of you, it began to lose hope. Sounds to me like Fran gave it back to you." RJ sat back, considering her words as Lily's smile widened. "She still had hope for you to be you again," Lily continued, "seems that when she put her hand to yours, she transferred some of it to you and helped you put wolfy on a leash." RJ chuckled.

"That's an interesting way to put it," RJ said.

"So, after you were you again, what happened?" Lily asked. RJ shrugged.

"You know the rest, I joined you guys in battle," he replied. Lily giggled, shaking her head.

"What, you just got up off her and left without a word?" She asked disbelievingly. RJ frowned.

"Well, no," he said, shrugging again. "I got up and," he stopped, his voice trailing off.

"And what?" Lily asked. Her eyebrows went up a bit and she couldn't help grinning as she saw RJ's cheek blush a bit.

"Held her hand," he muttered before quickly looking up, "to help her up off the floor, I mean," he quickly said. Lily simply gave him a knowing nod.

"Uh huh, and then what?" She asked.

"We hugged, and then I went out to find you guys," RJ said. He paused and looked at her. "What's that grin for?" He asked in a wary tone.

"Oh nothing," Lily said in an innocent tone, "just find it all interesting," she said. RJ stared at her for a moment before nodding and looking away. "And a little romantic," Lily said after a moment. RJ snapped his gaze back to her so fast his eyes could've popped out of their socket from the sheer force of the movement.

"Ro…romantic?" He sputtered out in disbelief. Lily chuckled.

"Oh come on," she said in a sort of sly tone, "her touch brought you back, you've got to see the romance in that," she said. RJ gulped. Of course RJ had had similar thoughts. Deep inside, he knew the tingling he was feeling in the hand Fran had touched and the rest of his body had to do with what Lily was suggesting, but that didn't mean he had to admit it.

"I think you should go downstairs and do some work," RJ mumbled quickly as he rose to his feet and walked over to his meditation mat as a symbol to Lily that this conversation was over. Lily climbed up to her feet, grinning like the cat that had gotten the canary. RJ sat down on the mat, crossing his legs and putting his hands on his lap as he closed his eyes.

"Sure RJ, whatever you say," she said before turning around and leaving the loft. As RJ heard her footsteps retreat, he slowly opened one eye to make sure she was gone before heaving a heavy sigh and lying on the floor on his back. He held his hand up above his face and resumed what he had been doing before Lily interrupted him: staring.

--

AN: Hoped you all enjoyed this. The second chapter should be up sometime tomorrow or this weekend at the latest. Don't forget to leave a review. 


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thanks for the reviews guys, glad you liked the first chapter. This chapter is a little short and might be kind of filler but it's more so like a bridge to the rest of the story. Hope you like. :D

2nd AN: Fran's name being short for Francine is pure speculation on my part.

Disclaimer: Look at chapter 1.

--

"_RJ!" Fran gasped as she felt the furry mass fall on her. It was heavy, so heavy she felt it pushing down on her stomach and chest, making it hard to breathe. The beast above her growled and snarled as it tried to get to her, its teeth bared. "No, don't!" Fran pleaded, trying her best to fight the beast off of her. She stared up at RJ's eyes with fear, silently pleading for him to let her go. The werewolf did no such thing as he simply increased his efforts. He overpowered her. "No!" Fran shrieked as she saw the wolf's mouth open wide as he dove for her neck. She squeezed her eyes shut, holding her breath as she awaited the feel of sharp teeth tearing into her skin. She flinched slightly though when instead of the feel of sharp jagged teeth sinking into her jugular she felt a pair of soft lips lightly brushing across the skin. Fran gasped and opened her eyes. She shifted her gaze to the back of RJ's head as he continued to lightly touch her neck with his lips. She expected to see the grey, matted wild fur of the werewolf she'd been fighting off but instead she saw dark, straight hair. "RJ?" Fran breathed out. She felt him shift above her until he was back towering over her. Fran smiled as she saw his face. There was no long snout, no fur, no sharp teeth, just RJ's face smiling down at her. "You're back," she whispered._

"_Of course I'm back," RJ replied softly. His voice seemed to flow like a soft spring breeze, echoing around them. "I could never leave you." _

"_You had me a little scared there for a minute," she said, chuckling nervously. RJ simply smiled before lowering himself down on top of her, his lips attaching themselves to hers. Fran's eyes drifted shut as she slowly returned the kiss. She moved her hands so they were no longer pushing against his shoulders and were now around his neck, her fingers weaving into his soft tresses. RJ's lips left hers and connected to her neck again._

"_You taste so good," RJ whispered against her skin as he kissed her pulse point, his voice flowing like the wind. "I could eat you alive," he chuckled, the sound echoing all around them. Fran giggled._

"_You nearly did," she whispered. She suddenly felt the hard floor beneath her fall away and be replaced by something soft, silky, a bed. "RJ…" She moaned. "Oh….RJ…"_

"RJ….." Fran mumbled in her sleep. "Oh," she sighed. She turned in bed, which unfortunately, the bed she was actually in wasn't as wide as the bed in her mind. "R--wha!" She exclaimed as she felt herself fall out of bed. "Oomph!" she grunted as she landed on her side, the collision with her carpeted bedroom floor shocking her into wakefulness. A low groan came out of her mouth as she lifted her arm up and put her hand on her nightstand, feeling around for her glasses. After a few seconds of patting the surface of the table, her fingers brushed across the frames of her glasses and she pulled them down to her as she sat up, slipping them on. She frowned as she looked around and saw only her dark bedroom. No silk bed sheets, no RJ, and no kissing. "Oh, poo," she muttered to herself. She looked up and saw the neon lights of her alarm clock indicate it was 4:30 in the morning.

"Francine?" She heard her mother's sleepy voice call from the other room. "Everything all right, honey?"

"Yeah mom," Fran called back, "just…uh…" She sighed as she was unable to come up with a good enough lie, "fell out of bed," she said. There was silence for a while; Fran figured her parents were either too confused by that notion, or having themselves a nice long chuckle.

"Are you all right, dear?" She heard her father ask.

"Yes," Fran sighed.

"All right then, go back to sleep."

"Sorry if I woke you," Fran called out apologetically. She sighed and climbed back up on her bed. She tore her glasses back off and set them back on her night stand before settling back down in bed with a small pout and her misfortune. Not only had she come out of a pretty great dream just when it was getting to the good part, but her parents were now probably having a good laugh at her expense. She sighed, closing her eyes as she tried to go back to sleep; hoping to return to the dream……and to her further chagrin, she had no such luck on either part.

--

RJ sat up in bed with a slight gasp as the dream he'd found himself in abruptly ended. He blinked as he looked around his room. His fingers touched the thin purple blanket draped over his legs. He almost expected to feel the cool smooth texture of the silk in his dream, which only led to him being jerked into reality as his fingers brushed against the cotton material.

"Whoa, intense," he muttered to himself before running a hand through his hair. He blinked as the movement brought him back to the dream, feeling Fran's fingers threading through his locks. He sighed and shook his head before throwing the blanket off his legs and swinging them off the edge of the bed. He slowly rose to his feet and carefully crept out of his room. When he came to the main room of the loft, he could hear the sound of Theo and Casey's snores coming from their respective rooms and the sound of Lily turning in her own bed. He walked across the room until he came to the stairs and carefully padded down the steps. The change from the room temperature wood floor to the cooler floor of the kitchen was a shock on his bare feet but he quickly got over it and made his way to the cabinet to fetch himself a glass. Once he got it out he went to the sink and filled the glass with cold water before touching the glass to his lips and downing its contents in a few deep gulps. He took a deep breath, panting a bit as he went to refill the glass. This time he took more leisurely sips from the glass as he walked through the swinging door to the dining area and sat down at one of the tables. He simply sat in the darkened restaurant, his fingers idly running over the smooth surface of the glass as he thought about the dream he just had.

He was on top of Fran as the wolf, just like earlier. Fran was scared and pleading for her life. He was wild, hungry, and ready to feast on his prey. He went for her neck, ready to sink his teeth but suddenly he wasn't the wolf any more. The hunger of the wolf was replaced by an entirely different kind of hunger as his lips found her neck and kissed it gently. He looked down on her, no longer the predatory beast he'd been moments before and her eyes were bright with happiness over that fact. He kissed her, tasted her. One moment they'd been on the floor, touching and kissing and the next they were in his bed. And then that was it, the dream just ended and RJ was awake. RJ frowned as he regarded his half empty glass of water.

"It was just starting to get good, too," he muttered to himself.

"What was?" Asked a sleepy voice, startling the wolf master. RJ looked up to see Lily padding into the room with a glass of milk in her hand.

"What are you doing up?" RJ asked as the yellow ranger slid into the seat across from him.

"I could ask you the same thing," she replied before taking a sip from her glass. She shrugged. "I got up to go to the bathroom and when I got back, Theo and Casey were snoring so loudly, there was no chance of that," she said with a small laugh. "So, your turn," she said. RJ sighed.

"Just….had a weird dream," he said. Lily took another sip of milk and wiped at her mouth.

"What was it about?" She asked.

"Fran," RJ breathed out. Lily leaned in closer, suddenly very interested in this.

"Really, now? So, how was it just starting to get good?" Lily asked with a slight smirk. RJ looked at her.

"Don't start," he replied. Lily chuckled.

"What was the dream about?" She asked. RJ shook his head.

"Nothing," he stated.

"It couldn't have been nothing," Lily insisted. RJ nodded.

"It was…It was just me and Fran……standing somewhere……and that was it," he lied, praying she believed him. He gave a slight shrug. "Guess that's what made it so weird, nothing happened." Lily grinned.

"Did you want something to happen?" She asked. RJ's eyebrows went up and how easily she turned that around on him. Though, he figured, it wasn't that hard to believe since he had left her such a huge opening.

"No," RJ quickly insisted, "I mean……I just…." He quickly raised his glass of water to his lips in the hopes of having a reason to not talk as he tried to come up with something to say. He downed the rest of the contents in the glass before setting it down. "I think I'll just be going back to bed now," he muttered.

"You mean going back to that dream of yours?" Lily teased. RJ glared at her.

"Thanks Lily, you just volunteered yourself for bathroom clean up for the next week," he said in a light hearted tone. Lily's face fell as RJ chuckled and stood up from the table.

"No fair!" She called after him. RJ simply chuckled and walked to the kitchen to deposit his empty glass in the sink before going up to the loft and climbing back in his bed, a part of him hoping he did, as Lily had suggested, return to his dream. Unfortunately, as much as he would've enjoyed that, he had no such luck.


End file.
